By Stelios Kanavakis - Senior Defence Analyst
US Naval Air Systems Command plans to fly the first Bell V-22 Osprey
made of 3D printed parts sometime this year, according to its vice commander
Rear Adm. Francis Morley. During his speech at the Sea-Air-Space exhibition,
he said that the first flight will be the critical test that will prove
the value of the technology in manufacturing critical parts. |
An MV-22
Osprey with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 261 prepares to land onto
the Karel Doorman, a Dutch warship, during an interoperability test
near Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C., June 12, 2015. The unit
worked jointly with the Royal Netherlands Navy to perform the first
MV-22 Osprey carrier landing aboard a Dutch warship and strengthened
the existing partnership between the two countries. Picture: USMC |
Elizabeth
McMichael, leader of the Additive Manufacturing and Digital Threat Integrated
Product Team at NAVAIR, has revealed that the parts to be produced are
engine nacelles and link attachments. The engineers have produced these
parts in three days using titanium-aluminum alloy (TI-6AI-4V) and they
will experiment with the use of stainless steel powde
Nevertheless, one of the core issues in additive manufacturing, apart
from the production, is the qualification of the new parts. The latter
could even take three months for a part, delaying significantly the
whole process. But these trials will provide the necessary insight for
the development of the technology and most importantly the development
of new methodologies and managerial procedures.
The US Navy has been planning since a couple of years ago to bring additive
manufacturing to the fleet while at sea. The service would like the
various units to have their 3D printing capabilities to produce spare
parts or other items that would otherwise require higher logistical
costs and time. In that way, the fleet would increase its self-sufficiency
and the availability of its platforms and systems. |
